To the editor:

The cry for individual rights is nothing new.

Back in the 1950s when we became aware of the problem of domestic violence, the cry from the abusers was that their right to do whatever they wanted in their own home was being violated.

In the 1990s when we became aware of the dangers of secondhand smoke, smokers protested that their rights to do whatever they wanted with their own bodies were taken away.

Now in 2010, we hear cries from Kelly Emerson about property rights. She is willing to do whatever it takes to protect them even if it means suing the county which actually is suing the taxpayers she vowed to protect. Ms. Emerson has been quoted as saying she will continue with lawsuits against anyone she feels gets in the way of her agenda.

What she is forgetting is what the abusers, the polluters and the power hungry have forgotten. When you exercise your individual rights at the expense of others, you are no longer right, you are wrong.

Luckily, we too have recourse. Is it too soon to start recall proceedings?

Carole Dawes

Coupeville